Police arrest Eastpointe man, confiscate 250 grams of crack' cocaine

Drugs and weapons confiscated by police during a search of an Eastpointe home earlier this month.

A 40-year-old Eastpointe man whom police say was convicted five times on drug-related offenses faces up to 40 years in prison after he was arrested in possession of crack cocaine.

Duchonn Travonne Coleman faces a preliminary examination Sept. 2 on multiple charges that stemmed from a police search of his Eastpointe home Aug. 20.

The investigation, conducted by Fraser public safety officers with assistance from Eastpointe and St. Clair Shores police, was triggered when Coleman sold drugs to an undercover Fraser drug officer, said George Rouhib, director of Public Safety for the city of Fraser.

The probe culminated when police searched the home on Lexington Street in Eastpointe and found 250 grams of “crack” cocaine; two loaded firearms; and several thousands of dollars in cash. Police estimated the street value of the drugs at $15,000.

Advertisement

Coleman was arraigned the following day on charges of possession with intent to deliver 50 to 449 grams of crack cocaine; being a felon in possession of a firearm; and maintaining a drug house.

He was ordered held in lieu of $75,000 bone and ordered to appear in 38th District Court in Eastpointe for a preliminary examination Sept. 2.

Rouhib said Coleman’s history of drug offenses could result in the defendant facing up to 40 years in prison, if convicted. Rouhib also said federal authorities could add to the charges.

Crack cocaine is a highly addictive form of cocaine that first appeared in the southeastern Michigan area in the mid-1980s, Rouhib said.

The drug’s popularity ebbed over the years, but Rouhib said drug officers have seen its resurgence recently.

“It’s basically the free-base version of cocaine,” the public safety director said. “We’re starting to see more of the crack.”